Jesus~ the same yesterday, today and forever!

We must keep our eyes on Christ, our ultimate leader. Unlike any human leaders, He will never change. Christ has been and will be the same forever, in a changing world we can trust our unchanging Lord. I know God is God, and He always will be God.’ We often try to dis-engage ourselves from the spiritual way of thinking – seriously! We tend to think the way man thinks; after all, we are still in the flesh. The Spirit within us keeps prodding our minds, wanting us to relinquish our whole being to the Lord. But, we keep overriding the Holy Spirit and go on our merry way. And, we get in trouble! 

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” ~ Hebrews 13:8

 

The enemy would have us think that we don’t need God, that we can do anything on our own. And, some believe his lies. We have to guard against the enemies words by keeping the Word of God closely in our hearts. God is always God, but, we sometimes get complacent in our spiritual lives. This is when the enemy steps in, gets your mind all muddled up with the world’s way of thinking, and you find yourself headed down the wrong path, and don’t know how you got there.

 

God never changes. He has always has been, is, and always will be the same. It’s us that change. We go on, day to day, either walking with the Lord, or going on our separate ways. We don’t realize we’ve separated ourselves from God, until we come across a problem that’s too hard for us to handle. We need help, so we turn to God. He’s there waiting for His children to come to Him, to sit at His feet, and learn of His ways. When He chastises His children, it’s because He loves us. He has always wanted the best for His children, from the time of Adam and Eve in the garden, until today. He never changes!

If you’ve become complacent, found yourself not growing, or perhaps completely separated from God, why not call His name? He is the same, yesterday, today, and tomorrow. He loves you as He did the first day you called upon Him to save your soul. He wants to be FATHER in every facet of your life. He can give you the peace you long for, and the love you may never have had. No matter how much you change, God is always the same. He LOVES you!

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How to Experience the Peace Jesus Promised!

“My peace I give to you” (John 14:27). Jesus spoke these amazing words just hours before His crucifixion. His peace isn’t dependent upon external circumstances, but rather, it transcends them. Sadly, many Christians live their whole lives without consistently experiencing this incomprehensible peace. Perhaps faith and submission are the most challenging issues. But only as we surrender control of our lives to Christ and trust in His plans for us will we discover tranquil rest for our souls. Although He gives His peace to every believer as a gift, our experience of it is related to our faith in the following truths:

God is in control of everything. Without this assurance, the world is a scary place. He loves us and will see us through every circumstance, no matter how difficult or painful it may be. To have Christ’s peace, we must surrender our lives to Him. When we hold onto our ways and plans, we’ll experience turmoil. We have a limited perspective and understanding of our circumstances and God’s purposes for allowing them. His goals for us are greater than our immediate comfort. The Lord promises to work all things out for our good. He is continually working to transform our character into Christ’s image. We must live in sync with God, walking in the Spirit and promptly confessing and repenting of sin. Scripture is our foundation for peace. It increases our trust in the Lord’s goodness, assures us that He keeps His promises, and reminds us of His sovereignty over every situation.

 

FINDING PEACE!

Choose to replace your anxious thoughts with intentional prayer. Your focus will shift from the gravity of your circumstances to the enormity of God’s power. You will gain God’s perspective on the obstacles you face and you will be fortified by God’s peace. How’s your heart? How’s your mind? Are you experiencing the peace that transcends all understanding? 

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” ~ Philippians 4:7 (NIV)

The peace of God is not the absence of adversity, but the presence of Divinity. God’s peace transcends understanding in that it is difficult to fathom. How can a believer have such peace in the midst of a raging storm? The peace of God is not subdued by the intensity of your circumstances. God dispenses His peace in proportion to your need. The stronger the waves of resistance you encounter, the greater the allotment of God’s peace you experience.

God’s peace will guard your heart. The enemy knows that if he can rob you of your passion for God in the midst of your adversity, he will have stolen a piece of your heart. The peace of God will guard your heart from the toxic assaults unleashed by the enemy. You have given your heart to Christ and His peace will reign in you.

 

During seasons of adversity, the enemy seeks to pollute your mind with thoughts of fear, timidity, and doubt. God’s peace will guard your mind. As you replace your thoughts with intentional prayer, the peace of God will shield your mind. Fear will be replaced by faith, timidity will be replaced with courage, and doubt will be replaced with assurance.

God’s Faithfulness!!

“You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.” ~~ Psalm 32:7

Be blessed to know that the God of your life sings over you as a mother soothes and comforts a child. In his arms, He surrounds you with songs of deliverance as you are led through strongholds of fear and anxiety to a place of safety, assurance, and confidence in him. In any trouble, you can sing under the wings of the Most High in harmony with His songs.

My dear friends receive this promise. You can tell others of your confidence in God’s name and his faithfulness. Your name is ever before him in heaven on a scroll of remembrance. He acts on your behalf, just because you are his. He cannot deny his own special treasure. He will rescue you as a compassionate father spares an obedient child.

 

“He that is in you is greater than he that is in the world.” (1 John 4:4). You have abiding safety in the Commander of the armies of heaven. His love covers you completely. His defense of you is invulnerable and never ceases. He is your defended place. Run to him as your safe place. His nearness is your good. You have undisturbed fearlessness as you settle down and make your home in him. He prepares a table before you in the presence of your enemies.

 

Believe and receive His unfailing perfect covenant love that casts out fear (1 John 4:18). Take this deep into your spirit and life-experience. You have His faithful promises that you are secure in his protecting presence. You can rest totally depending on the character of God. Be blessed to trust in the All-sufficient One who is enough. Be blessed to see what God is doing in your life that is a stepping stone to more of Jesus. Jesus is your shield of faith. In him nothing can destroy your joy, your hope, your relationships, your witness, or God’s purposes. And the God of peace will soon crush Satan under his feet.

 

 

If you are that someone who is afraid that God has forgotten you, or hasn’t heard you, let me remind you that He hasn’t. If you fear that the circumstances in your life will consume you, or if you are afraid for any reason, know that God has you in His righteous right hand. He will not let you go. So fear not, because if you are in the hand of God, the source of you fear won’t consume you. Remember that fear = false evidence appearing real.

When Life Isn’t Fair!

One of the common phrases people use is, “Life Isn’t Fair!”  Think for a moment about your own life — those times when you realized that life wasn’t fair. The One that can carry your through life’s unfairness is Jesus and through His Hope! His power, His strength, His Love, will put it all into perspective for you! Why? Because it’s not over for you. Just remember In Jesus, if you’re a born-agin believer we have the promise that one day, we will no longer have to experience life’s unfairness, pain & suffering, because we will be enjoying eternity in Heaven. If you have been handed a tough life or tough experiences, turn it around by giving your life completely to Jesus! Remember, it’s not the end of the story. It will get better. Trust God. TAKE HEART. 

“For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal weight of glory that far outweighs them all.” ~ 2 Corinthians 4:17

We’ll always face the inequities of life. The big issue is this: how are you and I going to face the unfairness of life and not give in to bitterness? I think it all comes down to looking to Jesus and trusting in Him and His perfect will, even while admitting that life is very perplexing. Remember how unfair life was for our Savior it took the most unfair act in history, the execution of Jesus, to satisfy divine justice in a world full of injustice. That event made it possible for the least deserving of all-a convicted thief on a cross next to his-to gain an eternity of undeserved happiness. One day the scales of justice will not only balance, but they will be weighted in our favor, all for our good and God’s glory. she is no better than that thief on the cross. There was nothing “fair” about Christ paying the penalty for our sins. We don’t deserve such mercy.

Let me urge you to read this passage today: Philippians 2:1-18. It’s a classic description of how Jesus dealt with the unfairness of life. I want to face the injustices of life as my Savior and Lord did — by being obedient to the Father. And then thank the Lord Jesus for how His submissive life resulted in new life for you.

As we let the mind of Christ dwell in us, we can face the truth that life truly is not fair and yet still be at peace because Jesus helps us overcome anything — including life’s injustices.

 

Please share this blog with others to uplift and encourage them in the Lord, Jesus Christ!

Love, Peace and Joy! You can find it today!!!

I want to ask you a question: Do you love yourself?

Take a minute to think about it. It’s an important question because your answer will determine how much love you are able to give to others. You see, if you don’t love yourself in a healthy, balanced way, then you won’t be able to spread the love of God to those around you because you can’t give away something you don’t have to begin with.

Now, I’m not talking about a selfish, self-centered kind of love for yourself that is arrogant and puffed up. That is not what I’m saying. There is a balanced way to develop a godly appreciation for who you are and the abilities God has given you.

I talk about this a lot because I think one of the biggest problems we have today is how we feel about ourselves. It seems many people have a broken record playing in their head that keeps repeating, “What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with me?”

One reason for this is we compare ourselves to other people and wonder why we can’t look or act like they do. Or we believe that God is mad at us for some reason…and then fall into the trap of thinking we need to try harder to measure up.

 

Don’t Be Misled

The devil wants us to feel bad about ourselves. He tries to mess with our thinking so we are always wondering why something is wrong with us. And many times we make the mistake of getting mad at ourselves because of it.

But God’s Word says that those who are in Christ have been made righteous. Second Corinthians 5:21 (AMP) says, “For our sake He made Christ [virtually] to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in and through Him we might become…the righteousness of God [what we ought to be, approved and acceptable and in right relationship with Him, by His goodness].” I like the Amplified version of this verse because it helps us understand the meaning of righteousness. As the verse says, it means that in Christ, we are as we ought to be. God created us. He approves and accepts us by His love and goodness.

 

Get Completely in God’s Will

As soon as you accept Christ, His love is poured into your heart.  In fact, He loved you before you ever accepted Him as your Savior.

I really want you to get this because the fact that God loves you is one of the most important truths you need to know. Loving God and then yourself in a healthy, balanced way is the first step toward fulfilling your destiny and becoming a vessel of God’s love so you can spread His love to others. It’s also the key to having everything Jesus died for you to have, like His righteousness, peace and joy.

I love what Romans 14:17 (AMP) says, “[After all] the kingdom of God is not a matter of [getting the] food and drink [one likes], but instead it is righteousness (that state which makes a person acceptable to God) and [heart] peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

That verse says the kingdom of God is not food or drink. I like to say that God is not about stuff. And He wants to give us something much more important—righteousness, peace and joy.

 

Are You Living in God’s Kingdom?

How much joy do you have? It’s pretty much impossible to have joy if you don’t know God loves you as you are and have peace with yourself. If you lack joy, maybe it’s because of the way you see yourself. Do you enjoy spending time with yourself? Some people get overly involved in activities because they can’t stand to be alone. And some folks are angry with themselves, so they avoid their own presence.

A good place to start growing in the area of balanced, godly self-love that includes a healthy attitude about yourself is by meditating on Ephesians 1:4-5 (NLT): “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.”

Remember that God loves you unconditionally. He created your temperament, your talents, and all your other traits. But we all have specific areas we can grow in and things to work on. That’s okay. The Holy Spirit is willing and able to help you grow in areas of weakness. Like I often say, “I may not be where I want to be, but thank God I’m not where I used to be!”

Wherever you are in your relationship with God, know that He has singled you out and chosen you to be His child. He is pleased with how He made you and His love surrounds you. You are the apple of His eye.

Be Happy with your Life right Now!

I think we would all agree that at some point in our lives, we each struggle with unhappiness, a spirit of discontentment, with wanting more than what we have. We have all those moments where we quiet listening to the Lord. Well, maybe it was more like talking at Him, telling Him what we wanted. Does that sound familair? I hope and pray these messages encourages you choice to be happy. Have a wonderful day being happy right where you are.

“I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” ~~ Philippians 4:11-13 (NIV)

 

How many times have we said this to God. If He would just give me the desires of my heart, I knew I could be happy. But I have learned in my life that what God wants from us is to Be happy now. If you don’t learn to be happy while you’re waiting for what you want, you’ll never be happy when you get what you want.

 

Let me encoruage you that happiness cannot be the sole aim of our existence. Living out our purpose by serving and loving others as Christ does is our ultimate goal. When we stop focusing so much on what we want, and focus our gaze on what God wants to do in and through us, contentment follows. In fact, happiness is an external indication of internal contentment.

 

This realization should stop us in our tracks. The idea that we could choose happiness is refreshing. The first step was to embrace life exactly as it was; in other words, to be content. To count our blessings more, Most importantly, decide to wholeheartedly trust God.

 

Instead of making the most of our circumstances, it’s easy to lament the fact that things are not where we believe they should be. What if we stopped pushing against what is and learned to embrace our present circumstances?

 

When that shift is made, it feels like a heavy burden is released from our shoulders. Truly accepting where we are helps us relax and see the good God has in our present circumstances. We cast our cares, content in trusting that all things indeed will work together for our good.

Please share this blog with others so that they may know Christ and His Father’s unending and ever faithful love!  Thank you and God bless you!  Please visit me on Facebook as well! 

 

 

 

Trade Anxiety for Peace!

God calls us to guard our hearts and minds carefully. (Proverbs 4:23) He also gives us amazing insight as He tells us how HE will also guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. It isn’t all up to us. Yes, we make the choice to pay attention to what we allow to settle there. We need to choose wisely and bring our thoughts and concerns to Him for His help.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God… And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” ~ Phillippians 4:6-7

 

When we do this God does the amazing and gives us a peace in our hearts that is beyond understanding! This peace itself guards our hearts and minds from dangerous stress and hasty, unwise choices. Thanksgiving is a key.  Everyday there is much to be thankful for. There is also much to keep one feeling anxious and worried. Yet God calls you to live in thanksgiving and in peace. Worry only gives way to fear and fear will displace your faith causing anxiety to grow. God tells us to let faith take the upper hand and cover over the fear that tries to slip in and rob you of peace. Let the truth of His word change your anxious heart and mind and let worry be your call to prayer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our God of Comfort!

Maybe this something you just need to hear at this moment in your life, I hope and pray it encourages you. Consider an area of trial in your own life, whether it is physical illness, emotional pain, family strife, etc., and thank the Lord for allowing you to go through it. When we are dealing with any pain, suffering or grief, we need to rely on the love of God to sustain us. Only the Father’s love could reach the deepest part of us that is hurting. We will feel His gentle arms carry us and cradle us in our time of grief.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,  who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. ~ 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

During this difficult time in our lives, we receive a deeper understanding of God as the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our troubles.

When we need comfort the most, He is faithful to be there. we will realize this through all our pain and disappointment, God just wants to be with us and to weep with us as His heart is breaking with our heart.

There are seasons of devastation that we all go through where we are in desperate need of a God’s love and comfort. Let your Heavenly Father carry you through these seasons in your life. You were never meant to shoulder these burdens on your own. God wants to comfort you with His tender love, so that you might be able to pass on the comfort that you have received to others when they need the His love.

Staying in Perfect Peace!

Do you want peace in your storms of life? Place your trust in the Lord and do not allow the storm to shake your faith. Praise the Lord that He is greater than any storm we will encounter! What is this peace? It is an inner sense of contentment and quietness, regardless of life’s circumstances. It is steadfast confidence in our ever-faithful, immutable heavenly Father. It is the presence of joy in the midst of unhappiness. 

“You will keep in perfect peace, all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!”~~ Isaiah 26:3

True peace does not merely dull our pain. A person who has genuine, godly peace can endure an avalanche of hardship and difficulty and still enjoy an inner peace that surpasses all human understanding. Why? Because it does not come from pleasant circumstances, nice events, or good things others may do for us. Instead, it is based on the fact that the Spirit of our holy, omnipotent, and never- changing God lives within us.

Does enjoying God’s perfect peace mean that you’ll never feel the effects of the storms raging around you? Hardly. But His peace is complete, adequate, and sufficient for anything you face. Keep in mind three keys to experiencing sustained peace:

• Focus on God. Perfect peace comes when you fix your mind on God. You must discipline yourself to meditate on God’s presence and work. When you spend time concentrating on a problem, does it not seem to grow bigger? In the same way, you will have a greater sense of God’s presence and provision as you fix your mind on Him.

• Trust Him. You never have to worry about God acting too late or providing insufficient help. His timing and purposes are perfect; in fact, He uses your tribulations to reveal more of Himself to you. His Word is full of rock- solid promises, many of which involve granting you peace. Know that He will always honor them!

• Meditate on His Word. Psalm 119:165 emphasizes that those who love God’s Word have great peace. Your most precious material possession is your Bible. Every believer should love God’s Word and feast on it daily. If you love it, you’re going to believe what it says— and then it will guide and anchor your life.